It’s safe to say that technology is the backbone of the world we are currently living in. In spite of the fact that this is the case, it can often be difficult to properly contextualize all of the massive changes that have occurred. A timeline of technology can reveal just how far back our developments have gone. Some might think that technology is a recent innovation, but its actual history actually stretches back millions of years to when the first stone tools were developed.
With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that our ancestors developed stone tools around 3.4 million years ago. Fast forward to 2.4 million years later, which is around a million years prior to the present day, and fire had started to be used for cooking meals. The next innovation was the invention of beds a couple hundred thousand years ago, which is the first major technological innovation that occurred after Homo Sapiens came onto the scene 300,000 years in the past.
Following the invention of beds, bows and arrows were invented approximately 60,000 years ago, and it was followed by the flute in 43,000 which happens to be the oldest musical instrument on record. Approximately 10,000 years ago, farming and agriculture were invented, and over the next few millennia writing, and the wheel were invented as well.
Of course, modern innovations are far more advanced than their older counterparts, and they are also being improved at a much more rapid rate. Within just a single lifetime, inventions such as gene editing, human-like AI and the outward expansion of the human race into the stars will all likely occur.
With the rate of innovation increasing and human lifetimes becoming ever longer, it will be interesting to see just how much things can change within the lifespan of a single human being. Humanity is reaching a stage of development that is entirely unprecedented, and no one can truly predict where things might be headed in the world of tomorrow even if they are experts in a given field.
H/T: OurWorldInData
Read next: STEM education has affected many students for the good: UNESCO’s study
With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that our ancestors developed stone tools around 3.4 million years ago. Fast forward to 2.4 million years later, which is around a million years prior to the present day, and fire had started to be used for cooking meals. The next innovation was the invention of beds a couple hundred thousand years ago, which is the first major technological innovation that occurred after Homo Sapiens came onto the scene 300,000 years in the past.
Following the invention of beds, bows and arrows were invented approximately 60,000 years ago, and it was followed by the flute in 43,000 which happens to be the oldest musical instrument on record. Approximately 10,000 years ago, farming and agriculture were invented, and over the next few millennia writing, and the wheel were invented as well.
Of course, modern innovations are far more advanced than their older counterparts, and they are also being improved at a much more rapid rate. Within just a single lifetime, inventions such as gene editing, human-like AI and the outward expansion of the human race into the stars will all likely occur.
With the rate of innovation increasing and human lifetimes becoming ever longer, it will be interesting to see just how much things can change within the lifespan of a single human being. Humanity is reaching a stage of development that is entirely unprecedented, and no one can truly predict where things might be headed in the world of tomorrow even if they are experts in a given field.
H/T: OurWorldInData
Read next: STEM education has affected many students for the good: UNESCO’s study
